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Especially peculiar was that this chubby boy was wearing very little clothing.
In this ice-cold snowy land, wasn’t he cold?
Liam and Robin, strolling casually, approached him out of curiosity.
The chubby boy maintained a serious expression, his knees slightly bent, one fist resting at his waist, and an open palm held in front of him, staring intently at the tree trunk without moving.
As Liam passed by, he tilted his head and casually asked, “Immortal?”
The chubby boy did not react.
“Monster?” Liam waved his hand in front of the boy’s eyes.
The chubby boy still didn’t respond.
“Thank you,” Liam nodded.
Just as they were about to leave, Robin heard a dull thud from behind.
She turned around and saw the chubby boy strike the tree trunk he had been staring at. The tree shook slightly under the impact, causing the snow on the branches to fall in a flurry.
“What is he doing?” Robin whispered to Liam.
“Hey, chubby, what are you doing?” Liam stopped and leaned closer to the tree.
“Don’t bother asking me, I’m determined to become the man with the strongest defense in the world! So, my lips are sealed,” The chubby boy said in a deep voice, still maintaining his stance under the tree.
Liam laughed, “At least tell us your name, or do you prefer being called chubby?”
“I told you, I am training in Haki to become the man with the strongest defense in the world. So, my lips are sealed. My name is Sentomaru, and I am not chubby,” he said seriously.
Liam mused, “He really did tell us everything…”
Sentomaru said, “That was me telling you, not answering your question.”
Robin: “…” Is this kid an idiot?
“Haki, is it powerful?” Liam leaned against the tree trunk, “Teach me.”
Robin recalled that Liam had always wanted to learn this thing called Haki. He had even asked Crocus to write a letter of introduction to find someone named Rayleigh to learn Haki…
“I’m the man with the tightest lips,” Sentomaru said seriously, “Besides, Haki can’t be taught in a few words. It requires rigorous training… Just look at me now, and it’s obvious. So, this doesn’t count as answering your question. By the way, I can either break this tree with one palm or dodge all the falling snow without looking, or my training is not over yet…”
‘We didn’t even ask the last part…’ Robin struggled to keep from opening her mouth wide in surprise.
Liam seriously suspected that if they stayed here longer, little Sentomaru might even voluntarily reveal his birthdate…
He looked up at the tree; it was thick and tall…
Liam took a deep breath, gathering his strength… Using techniques similar to explosive leg strength and Tekkai hardening, Liam channeled the life energy stored in his body through Life Return techniques, commanding his arm muscles to perform extraordinarily. His muscles swelled, and he struck the side of the tree trunk hard with his palm!
Bang!
A muffled thud resounded. The tree trunk shook continuously.
Snow cascaded down in a flurry, drenching the motionless Sentomaru.
Sentomaru: “…” You two sure dodged quickly.
Liam blew on his red, tingling palm, “That hurts… Breaking a tree with a palm strike is really tough! Good luck.”
Waving his hand, Liam walked away with Robin.
Robin looked back at the chubby boy under the tree and asked Liam, “Are you sure? You really want to learn Haki, right?”
“This chubby hasn’t figured it out himself…” Liam pointed to the empty air beside him, where the faceless battle armor followed closely. “See, he didn’t even notice this guy.”
—
Sentomaru looked at the dense footprints leading from the tree and stretching far ahead. “…” He raised his head.
The snow on the branches had almost completely fallen off.
Time to change trees…
He was about to move when his eyes noticed a clear palm print left on the tree trunk where the boy had struck.
Sentomaru stood silent for a moment, then raised his bandaged hand and struck the palm print on the tree trunk with force.
Bang!
The tree trunk trembled. After a moment, a crisp crack sounded from under his palm, and the whole tree broke under his strike.
“…” Sentomaru muttered, “Was that just pure brute strength? Who is that guy anyway…”
Liam and Robin trudged through the snow, arriving at the strange peak indicated by the uncle earlier— at the base of Dr. Vegapunk’s abandoned “geothermal project” from his youth.
Before they could take a good look around, the faceless armor following Liam suddenly raised its hand and patted Liam, pointing in another direction.
“Oh, did you find the research lab?” Liam waved his hand. “Lead the way!”
—
They came upon a large complex of buildings with a distinct chemical plant vibe. The main doors were sealed with iron bars and plates, with “No Entry” signs and the World Government’s cross symbol alongside the Marine’s seagull emblem.
This was Vegapunk’s home and former research facility.
The dark mask’s eyes glowed white, floating above the research lab. It passed through the iron walls like a ghost, surveying the area thoroughly before the main body arrived.
It drifted through the complex, passing through intricate corridors. Passing one room, it heard voices inside. It slipped through the walls to find a few marines leisurely reading newspapers or smoking and chatting.
At the inconspicuous exits, marines with guns patrolled.
About twenty marines were stationed here. From their conversations, it seemed the highest-ranking officer was a Headquarters lieutenant.
The mask, having observed enough, sensed its main body and other parts approaching the research lab. It turned sharply, brushing past a marine at the entrance, and headed straight for Liam and Robin.
—
“It’s really big!”
Liam and Robin were circling the research lab when they saw the mask ghosting out.
Liam caught the flying mask, placed it on his face, and turned to Robin. “Let’s go, big brother will show you around Paradise!”
‘Why is he calling himself my big brother again?’ Robin thought, but before she could react, Liam gently pushed her, and she shrank, flying into the ghostly castle within him.
In the empty snowy field, the dark mask floated in place. The faceless armor stepped forward, clicked, and the mask fit seamlessly, its eyes glowing slightly white.
It glanced at the iron walls of the research lab and walked through them like a phantom.
—
The sound of the wind and snow outside faded away. Inside the research lab, the lights were bright, and the place was empty and cold.
‘B.I.B.’ moved through the rooms, entering and exiting various labs.
Liam and Robin sat inside the castle portal on its chest, observing the strange equipment in each lab.
Whenever something caught their interest, they jumped out to examine it.
Most of the equipment was incomprehensible to Liam, and even Robin, an eight-year-old PhD holder, was confused. After all, she was a humanities scholar.
They couldn’t make heads or tails of the equipment, but they could at least try to read some of the blueprints and research reports they found. At least they could understand the words!
Though many diagrams were confusing and the lengthy texts gave them headaches.
Robin managed okay, being a child prodigy who had earned her doctorate at eight. But she couldn’t understand why Liam, despite looking pained, kept reading every single report without missing a word. He read faster than Robin’s casual browsing, and even more casually! What was the point of doing that?
“Slurp, slurp…” Liam, sitting at the entrance, somehow produced a bowl of noodles and was slurping them. He pointed at the research report with his chopsticks, “Seeing it is a gain, I’m just memorizing it first.”
Robin was astonished. “Do you have a photographic memory?”
“What do you think?” Liam raised an eyebrow proudly, casually taking a research report delivered by ‘B.I.B.’ from the door. He burst out laughing at the first two lines. “Pfft…”
“On the Transformation of the Moon xxxx…”
“…Alright, this report is basically useless. Unbelievable! The moon originally had an atmosphere… It shouldn’t be like this. Unless someone has already transformed the moon…”
“…Who could it be? Could it be…?”
(End Of Chapter)
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